Teleoperated, MRI compatible, hydraulic arm for in-bore MRI-guided biopsies

ABSTRACT

A hydrostatic teleoperator is provided to allow physicians remote access inside a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) bore.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application 63/149455 filed Feb. 15, 2021, which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to methods, devices and system for in-bore Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) guided biopsies.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Magnetic resonance (MR) offers safe, high contrast imaging of soft tissue inside the body, often superior to ultrasound (US) and computed tomography (CT). Today, MRI is predominantly used for diagnostic and preoperative imaging with limited ability to leverage it for guidance during surgical intervention. Poor access inside the MRI bore prohibits tool manipulation while patients remain inside the machine. In current biopsies conducted with MRI guidance, patients are removed from inside the bore for needle insertion and adjustment. The procedure is conducted step-wise, with incremental needle advancement between imaging scans and the patient repeatedly moved in and out of the bore. The present invention addresses the current shortcomings with an MRI compatible teleoperator that provides remote access inside the machine from several meters and enables needle manipulation without the need to remove the patient between imaging scans.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one exemplary embodiment, this invention focuses on a teleoperated MRI compatible arm system that a physician can operate remotely from several meters. The system is passive, meaning forces and motions are generated by the operator and the device transmits them through a low-friction hydraulic transmission to the output end. The device enables manipulation in seven axes and exhibits one-to-one motion, allowing the physician to position and orient the needle during insertion. Moreover, the system is back-drivable and passively reflects patient respiratory motions and forces, a major roadblock to other devices explored in this space. The configuration of degrees of freedom and inputs allows the manipulation arm to maintain contact with the skin while also allowing the operator to insert the needle. This technology pairs well an earlier patent application on an MRI compatible clutch (PCT/US2020/060138 filed Nov. 12, 2020).

By using the device as embodied herein, interventional radiologists at hospitals could perform in-bore MRI guided biopsies, improve procedure sensitivity and reduce current MRI biopsy procedure duration. Ultimately, this would improve the standard of care while reducing costs.

Embodiments of this invention have certain advantages:

1) As a multi-axis serial mechanism (i.e. arm), the workspace of the device enables biopsy of several organs.

2) The device is passive (all energy comes from the operator and motions/forces are mapped one-to-one between the input and output), reducing costs, regulations barriers, and safety concerns.

3) The device is back-drivable and exhibits force transparency (meaning the operator at the remote input can feel the forces occurring at the needle). This improves procedure accuracy and reduces duration.

4) The device conforms to respiratory motions, making possible biopsy of organs in the torso.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Other embodiments, further teachings and/or examples related to the invention are described in U.S. Provisional Patent Application 63/149455 filed Feb. 15, 2021, which is incorporated herein by reference. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A hydrostatic teleoperator for remote access inside a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) bore, comprising: (a) a first robotic arm; and (b) a second robotic arm having a needle insertion mechanism capable of being operational inside the MRI bore, wherein motion and forces of the first robotic arm are transmitted via hydrostatic lines to the second robotic arm to control the needle insertion mechanism while the first robotic arm is located outside the MRI bore. 